2005 NISSAN XTERRA Complaints

TRANSMISSION FAILED TO SHIFT AND MADE LOUD NOISES WHILE DRIVING. CAUSED THE CAR TO SHAKE BUT DID NOT LOSE CONTROL. FAILED PART IN RADIATOR ALLOWED ANTIFREEZE INTO TRANSMISSION AND TRANSMISSION FLUID INTO RADIATOR. COMPLETE FAILURE OF RADIATOR AND TRANSMISSION COULD HAVE OCCURRED ON HIGHWAY AT SPEED. KNOW ISSUE FROM NISSAN WHO DID NOTHING TO COMMUNICATE TO VEHICLE OWNERS ON RISKS OR PRECAUTIONS TO TAKE AS WELL AS NO OWNERSHIP FOR FIXING THIS. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 NISSAN XTERRA. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT START. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE DEALER FOR DIAGNOSTICS WHERE THE TECHNICIAN ADVISED THAT THE VALVE BODY WOULD HAVE TO BE REPLACED BECAUSE THE RADIATOR WAS CRACKED AND FLOODED THE VALVE BODY. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED BUT THE FAILURE RECURRED AFTERWARD. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT FURTHER REPAIRED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 130,000.

FIRST INCIDENT OCCURRED IN APRIL 2011 - WHILE DRIVING THE TRANSMISSION BEGAN TO FAIL AND WOULD NOT SHIFT. I HAD TO HAVE THE VEHICLE TOWED BECAUSE IT WOULD NOT DRIVE FASTER THAN ABOUT 15-20 MPH. THE NISSAN DEALERSHIP DIAGNOSED THE PROBLEM AS "INTERNAL FAULT IN VALVE BODY" AND REPLACED THE VALVE BODY. THIS INCIDENT COST ME $1568 AND A WEEK WITHOUT A VEHICLE; WENT IN TO DEALERSHIP ON 4/20 AND I PICKED IT UP ON 4/27. SECOND INCIDENT OCCURRED IN JUNE 2012 - WHILE DRIVING WITH MY KIDS IN THE VEHICLE, ON A BUSY STREET, THE TRANSMISSION BEGAN TO FAIL AGAIN AND WOULD NOT SHIFT. ONCE AGAIN, THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT DRIVE FASTER THAN ABOUT 20 MPH. THIS TIME I HAD THE VEHICLE TOWED TO A LOCAL TRANSMISSION REPAIR SHOP. THE DIAGNOSIS WAS "FLUID IS FULL, BUT IS BLACK AND BURNT, DIPSTICK FOR THE TRANS IS CRUSTY LOOKING..." THE TRANSMISSION SHOP REBUILT THE TRANSMISSION AND REPLACED ALL FAULTY PARTS, INCLUDING THE VALVE BODY. THIS INCIDENT COST ME $3865 AND ELEVEN DAYS WITHOUT A VEHICLE; WENT IN TO TRANSMISSION SHOP ON 6/15 AND I PICKED IT UP ON 6/26. IN FOURTEEN MONTHS, I HAVE HAD TRANSMISSION FAILURE AND HAVE HAD TO REPLACE THE VALVE BODY EACH TIME, A VERY EXPENSIVE PART. IT IS SIMPLY UNACCEPTABLE THAT THE MANUFACTURER PATCHES THE VEHICLE, INSTEAD OF FIXING IT, NOT TO MENTION CHARGES THE OWNER FOR THEIR DEFECT. *TR

FIRST INCIDENT OCCURRED IN APRIL 2011 - WHILE DRIVING THE TRANSMISSION BEGAN TO FAIL AND WOULD NOT SHIFT. I HAD TO HAVE THE VEHICLE TOWED BECAUSE IT WOULD NOT DRIVE FASTER THAN ABOUT 15-20 MPH. THE NISSAN DEALERSHIP DIAGNOSED THE PROBLEM AS "INTERNAL FAULT IN VALVE BODY" AND REPLACED THE VALVE BODY. THIS INCIDENT COST ME $1568 AND A WEEK WITHOUT A VEHICLE; WENT IN TO DEALERSHIP ON 4/20 AND I PICKED IT UP ON 4/27. SECOND INCIDENT OCCURRED IN JUNE 2012 - WHILE DRIVING WITH MY KIDS IN THE VEHICLE, ON A BUSY STREET, THE TRANSMISSION BEGAN TO FAIL AGAIN AND WOULD NOT SHIFT. ONCE AGAIN, THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT DRIVE FASTER THAN ABOUT 20 MPH. THIS TIME I HAD THE VEHICLE TOWED TO A LOCAL TRANSMISSION REPAIR SHOP. THE DIAGNOSIS WAS "FLUID IS FULL, BUT IS BLACK AND BURNT, DIPSTICK FOR THE TRANS IS CRUSTY LOOKING..." THE TRANSMISSION SHOP REBUILT THE TRANSMISSION AND REPLACED ALL FAULTY PARTS, INCLUDING THE VALVE BODY. THIS INCIDENT COST ME $3865 AND ELEVEN DAYS WITHOUT A VEHICLE; WENT IN TO TRANSMISSION SHOP ON 6/15 AND I PICKED IT UP ON 6/26. IN FOURTEEN MONTHS, I HAVE HAD TRANSMISSION FAILURE AND HAVE HAD TO REPLACE THE VALVE BODY EACH TIME, A VERY EXPENSIVE PART. IT IS SIMPLY UNACCEPTABLE THAT THE MANUFACTURER PATCHES THE VEHICLE, INSTEAD OF FIXING IT, NOT TO MENTION CHARGES THE OWNER FOR THEIR DEFECT. *TR

RADIATOR FAILED LEAKING COOLANT INTO TRANSMISSION. RADIATOR HAD TO BE REPLACED AND TRANSMISSION REBUILT AT AN OUT OF POCKET COST OF $3,800. *TR

MAY 2012. I WAS DRIVING THE VEHICLE TO WORK, THE DAY THE "SERVICE ENGINE SOON "LIGHT INITIALLY CAME ON. 30 MINUTES LATER, YELLOW FUEL INDICATOR LIGHT CAME ON, VEHICLE WAS NOT OUT OF GAS, HAD APPROX. 1/2 TANK. I WAS CONCERNED ABOUT THE FUEL LIGHT, SO I IMMEDIATELY DROVE TO A NEARBY GAS STATION AND FILLED UP TO A FULL TANK OF GAS. AFTERWARDS, FUEL ENGINE LIGHT REMAINED ON AND GAUGE STILL SHOWED EMPTY. ONLY AFTER DRIVING IT FOR SEVERAL DAYS, FUEL LIGHT FINALLY WENT OFF, SERVICE ENGINE SOON REMAINED ON. SINCE THIS INITIAL INCIDENT EVERY TIME I PUT FUEL IN THE VEHICLE, THE TANK STILL SHOWS EMPTY AND TAKES SEVERAL DAYS OF DRIVING TO SHOW WHERE I FILLED IT UP. I RECENTLY TOOK THE VEHICLE FOR A DIAGNOSTIC TEST AND IT SHOWED PROBLEMS IN THE FUEL SENSOR/FUEL PUMP. I ALSO VISITED MY LOCAL NISSAN DEALER AND THEY SAID, THAT I WAS NOT TURNING THE GAS CAP ENOUGH AFTER FUELING UP. I ALWAYS ENSURE THAT I TURN THE GAS CAP SEVERAL TIMES AT LEAST 4 TURNS, UNTIL SEVERAL CLICKS ARE HEARD WHEN SECURING THE GAS CAP AFTER FUELING. I AM SURE THIS WAS NOT THE PROBLEM. I AM VERY CONCERNED AS I DRIVE A GOOD DISTANCE TO WORK, ON GRAVEYARD SHIFTS. THIS IS THE 1ST MAJOR PROBLEM, I HAVE HAD WITH MY NISSAN XTERRA AND UNFORTUNATELY IT DOES NOT SHOW AS A RECALL. I FEEL UNSAFE DRIVING THE VEHICLE AS I DO NOT KNOW WHEN IT WILL RUN OUT OF FUEL PARTICULARLY ON FREEWAYS AND BUSY INTERSECTIONS. I OFTEN HAVE SMALL CHILDREN AS PASSENGERS AND THIS CONCERNS ME THE MOST. *TR

MY 2005 NISSAN XTERRA HAS EXPERIENCED A FUEL SENDING UNIT FAILURE. AFTER RESEARCHING THIS PROBLEM ONLINE, I HAVE FOUND THAT THIS IS A KNOW PROBLEM FOR THIS YEAR AND MODEL. NISSAN DOES NOT RECOGNIZE IT AS PROBLEM, NOR WILL THEY COVER IT UNDER WARRANTY. THIS IS SUCH A PROBLEM THAT THERE IS OVER A 2 WEEK WAIT TO GET THE PARTS TO CORRECT THE PROBLEM. THE GAS GAUGE WILL ALTERNATELY READ DIFFERENT FUEL LEVELS. WHEN THE TANK IS FULL, IT READS THAT THE TANK IS EMPTY AND THE LOW FUEL LIGHT IS LIT. IT WILL THEN CORRECT ITSELF, AND ONLY REGISTER TO A 1/4 OF A TANK. AFTER IT REACHES THAT LEVEL, IT WILL NO LONGER GIVE AN ACCURATE READING AND AT TIMES WILL ONCE AGAIN READ AN EMPTY TANK. *TR

A NISSAN FAULTY RADIATOR (ORIGINAL EQUIPMENT) CAUSED ANTIFREEZE TO MIX WITH TRANSMISSION FLUID SLOWLY DETERIORATING THE COMPONENTS OF THE POWERTRAIN/TRANSMISSION OF THE VEHICLE. NISSAN HAS ACKNOWLEDGED AND AGREE TO REPLACEMENT COSTS OR REPAIR TO THE FAULTY RADIATOR AND TO ITS POTENTIAL HARM TO THE TRANSMISSION BUT REFUSES TO ACKNOWLEDGE OR WARRANTY THE ERODED TRANSMISSION CAUSED BY THE DEFECTIVE RADIATOR. *JS

I AM THE ORIGINAL OWNER OF A 2005 NISSAN XTERRA. I HAVE HAD ALL REPAIRS AND SERVICES DONE AT DEALERSHIP AND HAD AN EXTENDED WARRANTY UNTIL APPROX 94K MILES. I BROUGHT XTERRA TO DEALERSHIP IN AUGUST 2011 FOR SERVICE AND WAS ADVISED AT THAT TIME THAT I HAD COMPLETE TRANSMISSION FAILURE BUT NOT TO WORRY BECAUSE IT WAS UNDER WARRANTY. THE TRANSMISSION WAS REPLACED AND THEY WERE NEVER ABLE TO TELL ME WHY THE TRANSMISSION FAILED IN THE FIRST PLACE. I HAD A WARRANTY ON THE NEW TRANSMISSION FOR 12K MILES TO APPROX 104K MILES. I BROUGHT MY XTERRA TO DEALERSHIP IN MAY 2012 FOR JERKING AT APPROX 105K MILES, JUST PAST THE NEW TRANSMISSION WARRANTY. I WAS ADVISED THAT I HAD AN INTER COOLER LEAK WHERE COOLANT WAS MIXING WITH MY TRANSMISSION FLUID AND THAT THE PROBLEM COULD NOT BE REPAIRED THAT I WOULD HAVE TO "JUNK" MY XTERRA. I WAS ASSURED HOWEVER THAT I DID NOT HAVE ANYTHING WRONG WITH THE NEW TRANSMISSION. NISSAN FLUSHED ALL MY FLUIDS AT A COST OF $254, TOLD ME TO DRIVE THE XTERRA AS MUCH AS I COULD FOR THE NEXT THREE WEEKS AND BRING IT BACK TO THEM AND THEN THEY WOULD CONFIRM IF THAT IN FACT WAS THE PROBLEM. I TALKED TO SEVERAL MECHANICS INCLUDING TWO NISSAN MECHANICS AND WAS TOLD THAT I WOULD NOT HAVE TO "JUNK" THE XTERRA THAT I WOULD HAVE TO REPLACE THE RADIATOR AND TRANSMISSION AND NOT TO DRIVE THE TRUCK UNTIL IT WAS REPAIRED. I WAS ALSO ADVISED TO CONTACT NISSAN NORTH AMERICA. I CONTACTED NISSAN AND THEY TOLD ME AFTER THERE INVESTIGATION THAT I WAS TOO FAR OUT OF WARRANTY AND THERE WAS NOTHING THEY COULD OR WOULD DO TO ASSIST ME FINANCIALLY IN REPAIRING THE DAMAGE. I AM ALSO AWARE THAT NISSAN KNEW ABOUT THERE DEFECTIVE RADIATORS AND THERE IS A CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT AGAINST THEM FOR THIS EXACT PROBLEM. *TR

TRANSMISSION LOCKED UP ON HIGHWAY. EVIDENTLY ENGINE COOLANT HAD GOTTEN INTO THE TRANSMISSION BY WAY OF FAILURE OF THE RADIATOR. COULD HAVE BEEN KILLED... *TR